New Blog!!

Here is the link to our new blog, Our Blessed Chaos!! Still playing with themes and you'll see there's still tweaking to do, but that's the fun of it, little by little I can customize it to fit our family(as time allows of course!) I'll be posting on this site from now on so if you 'follow' our blog scroll to the bottom(of the new blog) to subscribe to this site name as the other one will not show updates.

As for the name change, I didn't want to change from 5scoops to 6scoops because well what if more flavors get piled on top?!! As Ben and I have been praying and searching the scriptures we know that God wants our hearts to mirror His and He tells us over and over that children are a blessing and not a burden. He is the one who opens and closes the womb, and having a large family is not something that we should prevent out of fear (of which there are many forms, maybe that's for a later post). Anyhow as the Lord works on our hearts and our family the name 'Our Blessed Chaos' fits us just nicely regardless if more children are given to us!! Thanks to my good friend Angie who came up with the name!(She knows us well!!)

So as often as you visit, sit back and enjoy the chaos!!!

~Seeing Jesus in the midst of it all,

Jeni

365~84 ...to the snow He says, 'Fall on the earth,"

"For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven

and do not return there but water the earth,

making it bring forth and sprout,

giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,

so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;

it shall not return to me empty,

but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,

and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.1

Is 55:10-11

365~83 "Meanie-Tiny-Mo"

My kids love rolls and to their delight daddy brought home a big bag of them the other night! Well with lunch today Gabe was buttering them up and the younger kids were fighting for the first. Jake came out disappointed and told me "Moooom we did, 'My mom told me... meanie tiny mo', and Madi was 'it' and she took mine"! Oh they learn so young!

He was still thrilled to have the next one!

365~82 Surprise*Surprise*

So I put on a jacket this morning that I haven't worn since late last summer(while I could still fit in it!) And whudda ya kno'... There's chocolate!! Though I did find it in the presence of my kids so I HAD to share! ;-( But still I was thankful for my 'one' piece!

365~81 Cloth for the dollies!

Her dolls are even sporting cloth diapers!! She's a pro at changing her baby as well as Alison!(and she's 5!!) I'm amazed at her nurturing instinct. She just 'loves' taking care of little ones and is a huge help to mama!!

365~80 3 months old!

She still looks so small in our big bed! Oh how fast these days go by. ;-(

365~79

A day at the cousins' being very silly together!!

365~78 "Chicken"

Braden and his cousin playing Chicken! A super fun dice game!

365~77 No Magic Shell

We ran out of 'Magic Shell' so the boys decided to melt chocolate chips and drizzle them on their ice cream! Worked like a charm, they loved it!

365~76

Pretty sky, even through the tree in our front yard!

365~75 Mixed Drinks!

Every Wednesday after art class we go to Grandma's coffee shop. It's a highlight of the week! Well the kids get to pick whatever drink they want... soda, hot chocolate, smoothie, etc. Well for a few of them that choose soda they like to experiment and for the last few weeks they've filled their cups with equal amounts of each flavor (minus diet coke): Coke-Sprite-Root Beer-Lemonade-Orange. Sounds gross but they insist it's delicious!!

365~74

We have an acrobat!

365~73

Ethan LOVES his little "Clairabelle" (his nickname for her)! And check out the belly! I ran out of pants to go with her onesies so I put these(0-3mo) on her til her 'stretchy' pants were dry!

365~72

Mmmmm Down-home cookin'...

Making my mom's Chicken N' Noodles

365~71 Doing Sports God's Way

Braden went to a FaBuLoUs football camp with the FCA! I was immensely impressed with the gospel-centeredness of the drills! Everything they did pointed to Christ and His atoning work on the cross. All the while urging the boys to trust in Him and live for Him!!!

365~69

Oh the bond!

Thirty-Two Things

Thirty-two things I'm thankful for on my thirty second birthday:

beauty of snow resting softly on the pines

the voice of my mom singing 'Happy Birthday' to me over the phone from a thousand miles away

a dad that lives close by when you're at art class and your three year old doesn't have good aim so you need a change of pants

the first attempts of a belly laugh from an 11 week old

muffled conversations of preschoolers under countless layers consisting of blankets, couch pillows, and a Hello Kitty umbrella

a tug of my shirt and I turn to find an awaiting kiss from my husband

laundry basket full of cloth diapers: Better for the bottom line (pun intended)

slowing wiggles of little ones cuddled next to me during naptime

the feel of my little boy's fingers tangling my hair as his lids fall heavy

the gasps of baby's breath when the bath water splashes over her belly

that "just one more" kiss goodnight

evidence and design of God's creation

chocolate chip muffins

vanilla flavored coffee

a hand-written card from my 5yr old

("Merry Christmas" too cute-she said "because we had fun at Christmas"!!)

God's word in our own language

a husband who leads his family in God's ways

grace that's lavished on me, sufficient for me, and always given at precisely the right moment

God's mercy when I fail to rely on said grace and instead follow my own way

sweet encouraging words from a friend

the cold side of the pillow

the click of my camera

(my gift from the kids)

homemade hot beef for lunch from my step-mom

the freedom and privilege of teaching my kids at home where I can focus on their hearts as we learn about God's world

a sweet text from my husband

my salvation in Christ

bubbles on a baby's lips

buds on trees reminding me of new life

wide eyes of a child saying "OOHHHhhh now I get it" over his math work

closets full of neatly folded clothes (doesn't happen often and I'm still thankful for the messy ones!)

the way my little girl says 'ith' instead of 'if', too cute

a blog to record all the big and little moments of life!

365~68 Another year older!

I turn 32 today! I'm enjoying my many blessings. God has been exceedingly gracious to me. I pray that I would be grateful for 'every' thing in life(blessings and trials) and that if He gives me another birthday I would be a different person than I am today by His grace!

365~67

Family game night! My mom bought a great game for us, Wits & Wagers Family. The great thing about this game is all the answers are numbers so it's easy for the younger kids to guess, ie How many gallons of water does an elephant drink in a day? How many inches across was the largest hail stone in U.S. history? How many mph was the fastest wind speed ever recorded? How many pieces of Pez does a Pez dispenser hold?

50 gallons of water is consumed by an elephant a day

Hail stone 7in: found on June 22nd, 2003 in Aurora, NE

318mhp The speed was recorded in 1999 in an Oklahoma tornado

Pez holds 12 pieces

Alison Week 11

70 days old

I snapped this on a whim at my dad's while buckling her in her car seat. Love her!

71 days

READY for bed, with her kimono top, baby legs, and totally non-matching purple diaper!

72 days

I'm amazed not only at my infatuation with her but daddy's as well! It seems to me that as we grow older(or just have more kids!) we sense a feeling of the speed of time. We desire so dearly to grab and stop the ticking yet we can't. All we CAN do is take in fully the moments God gives us in the now. So that's what we do...

73 days

Oh the rolls!

74 days

(A thousand words)

75 days

Chewing once again

76 days

We had a wonderful visit with my Grandma today. The kids can't stop talking about tractors when you mention Grandma Jeanne. They simply love the quiet of her house, the cookies(m&m's- what have you!)and of course THE TRACTORS. Today was no different though for Alison she'll have to wait a couple years to enjoy that part of Grandma's house. In the meantime she'll just giggle and smile when Grandma gives her her undivided attention(something she dearly loves!) Love you Grandma!!!

365~66

Tractors everywhere!! We had a great visit with Grandma Jeanne today! The boys just love going to her house and the first thing they get out is the tractors(really the only thing) It occupies them the entire visit. They set up their zones and play away! Such fun memories they're making!

365~65

Gabe bought himself a new bible today and couldn't be more excited about it!

It's funny how a new bible causes you to be in the word more. When really we should be diligent about studying in all circumstances and not give in to the temptation of passing our bibles by yet another day. Oh the Rom 7 struggle!

That our children may one day walk in the truth would bring us much joy!

365~64

Loungin' watching a Saturday morning video!

365~63

Today we mourn the loss of Aunt Carol. She had a lung transplant about 14 years ago an the doctors gave her 5-7 years. She far surpassed that. Though not actually related we grew up with their family. I have many memories of her and her family. Such as our weekly get-togethers to watch America's Funniest Home Videos. Our taking turns jumping out of a backhoe bucket onto the trampoline below(not wise as that's how Uncle Dave broke his back-and I don't think Carol did this). Enjoying the great outdoors on, too many to count, camping trips, as well as a vacation to the Black Hills & Yellowstone! My goes out to her family. She is dearly missed by many.

365~62

Gabe trying out daddy's respirator mask. A handy thing to have in a house with many boys!!

365~61

LOVE this!!! Heated leather seats in the new(new to us) van!

365~60

Home schoolin' at it's best ;-)

Alison week 10

63 days

She's folds her hands a lot! I pray she becomes a prayer warrior!!

And that the Lord fills her with joy all the days of her life!

64 days

Sad day... Shot day

On the upside she's at the 75% for weight(12lb) and height(can't remember-I'll have to fill in later ;-) She's super healthy and the Dr. says she'll keep her blue eyes.

That will be two out of six to get blue eyes.(two have brown, two have green/with a touch of brown)

She also has a definite hint of red in her eyebrows and hair. Not sure if it will stay or not, we'll see.

Just look at those adorable camo band-aids!!!

65 days

A series of photos of sisters...

66 days

Madi dressing her doll ;-)

same day... another diaper change

68 days

Crystal blue eyes that we hope she keeps!

365~59

Family devotions in 1 Samuel! Love this time!!!

365~58

Now a sick day for this guy! Though this is after Motrin, he's looking not as sick here as he did an hour earlier!

365~57

Snack time!!